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G-Star charter school cleans up after unsatisfactory health inspection

A year after a dining space at G-Star School of the Arts was shut down by Palm Beach County’s fire marshal, the Palm Springs charter school is again doing some quick work to fix up its campus.

In September, G-Star received an unsatisfactory rating from the Palm Beach County Health Department after an inspection uncovered multiple problems, from damaged or missing ceiling tiles, dirty rooms, dead cockroaches and malfunctioning air conditioning. Inspectors also noticed graffiti, peeling paint and poor lighting in some areas.

The school worked to clean up, and in a second inspection a couple weeks ago, it received a satisfactory report, although several problems continue to linger, and the report notes that some repairs are still in progress.

“We righted it all, got it all straightened out,” said Greg Hauptner, G-Star’s founder. He said he hasn’t received any complaints from parents, and hopes to have all issues resolved by the time the health department checks in again in December.

The health inspection reports come a year after a brouhaha over the school’s dining options. After complaints from parents about students having to eat lunch outside, G-Star opted to open two buildings for students to temporarily use as a lunch space.

But after only one day, the county fire marshal shut that down, saying the buildings weren’t set up for student occupancy. For instance, they had security bars on their windows and no fire alarm system, according to the Palm Beach County Fire Rescue specialist who conducted the inspection.

Hauptner said he wanted to assure parents, students and others that the school is being maintained. He said the school is in a good financial position right now and is able to do needed repairs, despite limited funding from the state.

“We have found the extra money to take care of what we have lost from the state,” Hauptner said Thursday, adding that the school will soon install new awnings to make eating outside more enjoyable for students. “We have no complaints, and everything has been taken care of to the satisfaction to the inspectors.”